3 Best Cities in America for Middle Class Families in 2024
Written by
Gina Hagler
Edited by
Cory Dudak
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Deciding someplace is the best place to live can be subjective. Surfers will head for the coast, skiers to the north, political wonks to D.C., and other areas that meet their idea of the good life. Using income as a deciding factor will bring a narrower list for consideration, while combining income and what’s needed for a family will make a list even shorter. So, what are the five best cities in America for middle-class families in 2024?
What Is the Middle Class?
A Pew Institute study shows that the definition of the middle class has changed over the years as different economic factors have assumed prominence in the calculation. In 2021, Pew described the middle class as “an annual household income that was two-thirds to double the national median income in 2020, after incomes have been adjusted for household size, or about $52,000 to $156,000 annually in 2020 dollars for a household of three.” While having a standard rationale is useful because the cost of living varies by location, knowing what it takes to be in the middle class in different cities is also helpful.
What Is Family-Friendly?
In a recap of family-friendly places to live, U.S. News identified the most important factors for families when choosing a place to live. In addition to the cost of living and average salary, these were five other musts:
- Quality of high school education
- Average commute time
- Crime rate
- The overall well-being of the area
- Access to top-notch health care.
What Are Three of the Best Cities?
The three best cities for middle-class families, as reported by U.S. News are:
- Huntsville, Alabama – With a median home price of about $350,000 and an average annual salary of just over $60,000, Huntsville’s cost of living puts it at the top.
- San Jose, California – The median home price is about $1.5 million, with an average annual salary of nearly $100,000. Yet San Jose’s “number 1 rank among the 150 most populous metro areas in the U.S. for college readiness among high school students” puts it at the top despite a higher cost of living.
- Green Bay, Wisconsin – The median home price of $278,558 and the average annual income of $51,510 are attractive in and of themselves. Throw in a cost of living that is less than 20% of the median income, “low rates of property crime, violent crime, and murder.” Top it off with an average morning commute of about 20 minutes, and Green Bay is a strong contender.
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